Catch Me When I Fall From Grace
by Flash Roses
Summary: Updated Summary! Fayt ends up on Elicoor with Albel. When Airyglyph and Aquaria go to war, will Fayt be dragged along for the ride? Eventually will be an Epic. FaytxAlbel
1. Cutting Edge of Notion

Disclaimer: Star Ocean: Till the End of Time belongs to the wonderful people at Tri-Ace. I am making no money off of this story.

**Warning: This fic is Rated R for a reason. Some scenes in this chapter are very bloody, particularly this first one. If this kind of thing offends you, then please read another story.**

For those of you who still want to read the fic, but want to skip all the gore, just skip the paragraph in the beginning here that starts with "Albel's nose."

**Another Warning: This fic will eventually be Fayt/Albel, but that won't come for a long time yet. If that kind of thing offends you, then please don't read this story.**

Author's Notes: This story will be an **Epic**. It starts during the events on Hyda IV and will likely go on well past the end of the game. For the first few chapters, it may seem like a novelization of the game, but it is NOT.

I had better go before this AN gets longer than the actual story!

Catch Me When I Fall From Grace Ch. 1 - Cutting Edge of Notion

part1

_Falling Angels_

'_Albel...Albel sweetie...Where are you?' He reached blindly through the swirling mist toward the woman's voice. Jagged trees waved twisted branches outward to him. 'Child, where are you? Mommy's looking for you, love. Come find me. . . I love you.' Albel began running through the white fog. His arms and his clothing were being shredded by the thorns and branches of the strange plants. He had to find her! The woman's voice continued on, searching. 'You were always such a nice boy, weren't you. Never getting in trouble or going out to play and getting lost in the hills. Any mother would be lucky to have such a good little freak. _

"Mommy!" he called out to her. In his panic he tripped.

'_Mommy was ever so surprised when Sir Woltar brought you home. Then he told me that Father was dead...And then he showed me your arm...And your heathen claw...True followers of Apris don't have CLAWS...Claws are for monsters, child, demons... You're a demon, aren't you child? _

The woman's voice became a shriek. _Demons aren't welcome in my home...Evil children must be punished..._He covered his ears against the onslaught, but more voices joined in.

_Fallingdownmymonstermypuppetburnthieffleshfallingoffbonefallingoffthesoulandfeatherl esswingsspreadfreakfallingintodarknessyouaredeathfindyourangelfallingblooddrippingo ffpristinewingsburnedfleshrippingoffyourarmdiefiendblackdragonfailure_

Albel's nose began to bleed. Soon blood was rising in his throat, choking him. His eyes were unfocused and he squinted at his hands. They looked black. When Albel tried to push himself off of the ground, the burned flesh of has hands slid off, like the skin of an orange. He stared blankly at the muscle and bone that was revealed where the charred husk of his skin had been. It was just like when Father had died.

_Burnunworthythingnolovenoaffectiononlypaingiveonlyhatereceiveloathingfearyourangel willcomemonsterangelwillcomewatchwaitlistenhearfeathersfallingoffbroken wingsdestructiondon'tdestroykillmaimhurtbreakdestructionhewillcomegivelovebringhap pinessdon'tkillmonster_

Then his mother whispered his sentence. _'Die.'_

Albel Nox screamed

and woke up. "Damn," he swore softly under his breathe. He knew he wouldn't fall back asleep for at least several more hours after that dream, and he really needed the rest. He had been training the newest batch of soldiers even harder than usual, and it was catching up to him.

'Must be getting old,' he thought to himself. Then the image of Woltar in his clothing crossed his mind and he scowled in disgust. 'Only a few hours before dawn. I should go and get some breakfast before all the flies wake up and gorge themselves on the food.'

He stood up groggily and took his clothes out of the chest at the foot of the bed. As the cold air hit his skin he wearily considered crawling back into the bed and staying there until the maids came around to light the fire, then decided that it was a weak thing to do. He winced when his toes hit the cold stone floor. 'I wish I could have stayed in Kirlsa.' One handed, he pulled on his skirt and tossed his shirt on to the bed. He sat down in the carved wooden chair in front of his desk and started pulling on his stockings. Then, still shirtless, he quickly combed his hair.

While he was slipping his shirt on, the fabric rubbed on the tender flesh of his arm. He hissed. It was impossible to put his shirt on with his claw covering his arm, but without the metal contraption the tender scarring was vulnerable. And wrapping his arm in bandages every morning just so he could get dressed easily was out of the question.

Albel put on his boots and his armor, then a warm cloak to fend off the chill, and slipped off into the cold stone hallways of Airyglyph castle.

"Albel, you're finally here. Good." It was never a good sign when Arzei was waiting for him in a deserted hallway. "I see you woke up early. Plagued by nightmares again?" Albel wondered briefly why the King couldn't have waited for him somewhere else, like in a _room_. Albel wisely avoided the comment about nightmares. Honestly, couldn't the mind his own business. 'Always egging me on, never giving me a moments rest…' Albel thought darkly.

"I see you're up just as early as I am." he sniped, to which the King responded, "Ah, I have yet to go to sleep." Albel frowned.

"So you've been up since sunrise yesterday? Don't be a fool Airyglyph, if you don't rest you might overlook something worth investigating. An Aquarian plot." Albel growled a bit, twitched his claw, and generally tried to look threatening. 'The blasted fool.'

"So you haven't heard the rumors." The King looked grave. "Well, I suppose that's all right. We'll be discussing it in the conference this afternoon."

"Rumors?" The King was apparently keeping something from him.

"Nothing really big. I'm not surprised you haven't heard, you don't talk to anybody, anyway. Not the gossiping type I suppose. But really, Albel, if you found yourself someone nice to settle down with, I realize you're a military commander and don't have time for relationships, but even just a friend…" By this time Albel had started to continue down the hallway again. "Wait, come back here."

Albel wandered back and let the King prattle on about his love life. The man had been obsessed with his short list of acquaintances since he moved into the castle. Always "find yourself a girl" this, and "be more approachable" that. He was leading a war! He couldn't afford such distractions!

"Albel, listening to people when they're talking to you is not only something you should do for friends, it also can reveal information about possible threats and such. If you were to pay attention for once, you would have realized that I just revealed the subject of the conference later accidentally, but because you weren't, you'll have to wait.

Albel frantically sifted through the bits of dialogue in his head searching for whatever it was that the King had just said. He sighed when he realized that he had no idea what it was.

"See, you should be more aware of your surroundings." The King sounded smug, as if he had just won an important battle against Albel the Wicked. "As I was saying, you should go get some breakfast before the rest of the castle gets up, avoid the rush."

"That was the plan before you interrupted me," Albel snarled at the King, who smiled pleasantly at the swordsman. "If you are quite finished." Albel turned his back on the King and swept off down the hallway toward the kitchens.

Arzei stood in the cold stone hall and chuckled. "Keep your eyes open, Dark Prince." He smiled and went to his chambers.

Albel opened the door of the musty kitchen. Smells of roasting sausage and bread immediately assaulted his senses. He looked around warily, some of these maids liked to push themselves on him whenever the opportunity arose. Thankfully he spotted an older woman with steel grey hair in a harsh bun, and a clean apron. 'Finally, one who won't try to slip _love potion _into my cider.'

He decided that tact might be the best way to go in this situation. He didn't want this competent cook getting offended and leaving the castle. He walked towards the counter where she was working. "Excuse me." The woman looked up from her chopping and turned around to face him.

"And what will you be having this morning, Sir?" she asked curtly. Before he could respond he was cut off.

"Oh, Sir Albel! What will you be having on this fine morning?" A young girl in a pink skirt with a tattered green scarf bounced up to him. Albel realized she must have been hiding behind some barrels or something. "Would you like soup, flat cakes, bacon, bread, cheese…" the girl began listing off items of food as she skipped around the kitchen. Albel groaned when he realized that the girl was thrusting her breasts out, and wiggling her hips as she walked. 'Probably trying to look attractive, as if I would ever take any interest in that fool.' He leaned casually against the door frame. Then the girl's elbow hit a cooking pot.

"Eeack! Oh no!" Albel watched as the girl spilled the boiling water on her foot. "Owwww! Ow-ow-ow!" She shrilled in pain dramatically. "Oh, won't somebody help?" she hopped around a bit for emphasis. " Oh, Sir, could you possibly walk me to the healer? I fear I've burnt my foot rather badly." she simpered.

The older women, fed up with her antics, dropped the knife she was using and swooped down on the girl and grabbed her by her arm. "Silly girl," she scolded her, and pushed the girl past him and out into the hallway. With the girl far away from the Captain, the older cook turned to him. "If you would excuse me for just one minute, m'Lord. Discipline is indispensable when dealing with these children. I will only be a short while." And without so much as a "by your leave" she swept into the hallway to face the vapid girl.

Albel stood inside the kitchen and listened with delight to the old woman's lecturing.

"What in the name of Odd-Eye are you thinking! His Lordship does not need a literal explanation of every food in this castle! Not only have you wasted his valuable time, you've made a fool of yourself in the process." Albel smirked. "What would Miss Leara think? You are supposed to be graceful, composed not a bumbling _harlot_!"

The girl whimpered a bit, but the older woman continued on. "Shamelessly throwing yourself at him! And what is he supposed to think of such behavior! Leave now, and I want three scrolls on this by lunch time!" The young girl scuttled off down the hall and the woman stepped back into the room.

"I am sorry for her abominable behavior, Lord. Hot cakes, isn't it?" Albel didn't ask how she knew what he normally ate. He just nodded his head, and she whirled off to the griddle.

part2

_Catch a Snowflake_

Albel wrapped the thin red cloak tighter around himself and looked down at the city stretching out below him. It was tempting to just let his feet slide off of the thin ledge of rock, and fall down past sharp spires into the icy moat water. Instead he stepped back and on to the more solid stones of the tower.

"Its freezing," he said aloud, even though he was alone. The cold mountain air of Airyglyph seeped into every crevice, and poured in through every open window. It was the type of cold that clawed its way in through your skin and made you bones ache.

Albel always felt so much older in this city.

He caught a drifting snow-flake in his mouth. It was an almost automatic reaction, left over from his childhood in Kirlsa. Snow was rare in the northern town, and children would spend hours outside in the freezing weather, just to run around in the few flakes that fell. Sometimes the snow would even last until late the next morning, but it was always gone by noon.

Airyglyph was also much more humid than Kirlsa. In Kirlsa it could read 102' on the thermometer that he had bought from the craftsman's guild, but still be bearable. In Airyglyph a day over 75' would be torture.

The low humidity also made the air so much cleaner, at least in Albel's eyes. It had bight to it. The breeze either cooled you, or froze you. Here, the air was muggy, and the wind wasn't refreshing.

"It's just to cold to be outside," he muttered.

Albel, lost in his thoughts, stood out on the tower for half an hour more, until the conference was about to begin. Then he walked down the crumbling staircase and shook the snow out of his hair and off of his cloak.

part3

_A Meeting_

"Woltar, have your men found any more of the Aquarian spies?" the King turned to the old man.

"No, m'Lord. We've searched the castle and the outlying barracks, but there has been no evidence of the remaining three."

"Good, keep at it. If they're hiding, we need to find them. It could be crucial to the future of Airyglyph." The King fell silent, and then murmured, "why would a peaceful nation like Aquaria send assassins?"

"They're trying to catch us off guard m'Lord. They know you won't sit idle like the previous kings while your people starve. It's a preemptive strike, so to speak." Vox took a swig from his carved goblet then continued. "If we strike now, we could defeat them. Even with our shortage of supplies, our soldiers are strong. They understand the risks. Aquaria's army, on the other hand, is weak. They've grown soft in their lush green fieldsthey're like cattle."

"Even so, I would like to speak with their queen before we do anything rash. It could simply be an upstart magistrate, or Sanmite. They certainly don't like us, and if Consul Marbidrean wanted our land, what better way to get it. Send in assassins that look like they're Aquarian, or hire freelance Aquarian assassins. Then when our Kingdoms go to war, side against us and take the spoils."

"A good theory, but what could we do if that were the case?" Woltar leaned forward and put his hand on one of the many maps. "If we ignored this in fear that it was a Sanmite plot, Aquaria could win the upper hand and attack during the winter." Woltar crinkled the map he was leaning on. He straightened the parchment before continuing. "What would we do then?"

"Woltar's right, for once," Vox began. "If we let this go, it could spell disaster to the Kingdom of Airyglyph. If we tried"

Albel cut him off, "Somehow, Arzei, I doubt that's the case. Sanmite's previous Consul was a Glyph hater, but Marbidrean has been unusually timid toward us."

The King nodded, "Marbidrean is afraid of our dragons." Albel snorted at the thought of a military leader being afraid of a common species of animal. The King continued, "He wouldn't attack us."

"Then why did you suggest it?" Vox interjected.

"I was merely demonstrating that there might be more to this than we think. Rushing in head first is the surest way to get a concussion." Arzei lifted his goblet and took a sip. "In any case, we should give this some thought tonight and meet again tomorrow. We have other matters to discuss."

This wasn't the answer the others were looking for. Vox stood up and slammed his goblet down on the table. He began shouting. "Arzei, don't you dare change the subject on us! This was an Aquarian plot! We should retaliate now, before they realize their subjects were captured!" Albel broke in.

"A swift retaliation would be best. Smash the insects before they multiply."

Woltar winced at the shouting. "M'Lord, tomorrow may be a bit late. Perhaps we could meet again later tonight?" His question was drowned out by Vox's shouting.

"If we don't strike now, you could be killed! What are you thinking? Are you insane?"

"Vox, sit down," the King calmly commanded. Albel was staring rather intently at him, and Arzei fidgeted a bit at the strength of his gaze. Vox continued ranting.

"I will NOT sit down! Arzei, if you don't do something about this NOW, then, so help me, _I'll_ kill you!" The room fell silent. Then the King spoke.

"Vox, if you don't sit down now and calm yourself I shall have you removed from this room and tried for treason." The King smiled grimly as Vox sat down. No one wanted to be locked up for treason. The torture was enough to make even the most stalwart man pale in fear. "As I said, we have other things to discuss."

Vox rigidly righted his now empty goblet. Arzei caught movement from the corner of his eye. He turned and watched with some amusement as Albel removed his hand from the hilt of his sword. Ever protective, Albel. Not that he would ever admit it.

"Woltar, how are the winter rationings going?"

"Very well, m'Lord. Kirlsa has a slight surplus, which will be shipped to Airyglyph tomorrow. It should arrive within the month. Darcheim is sending it's extra food to Mendelv. They have had an especially bad farming year, and even with the surplus on its way, I doubt the town will make it through the winter."

"Good, but I fear it won't be enough…With such political intrigues, the people will start to fret."

"Then we keep it a secret." Woltar looked pointedly at Vox. "They'll be oblivious if we keep a _low profile_." Vox snarled at the thinly veiled insult.

"Still, I worry. The rumors and gossip have already begun, and with the Church of Apris in turmoil, people will grow suspicious. It won't be long before they connect two and two together and realize that Apris is falling apart from the inside." The King of Airyglyph looked down at his cup for a minute. The council was silent.

"People know that there are skeletons in everyone's pantry, things that they want to keep hidden. It's the same with any institution. Apris is split in two, and it is likely that some dirty secrets will be revealed. Still, we mustn't judge. Yes, Woltar?" The King allowed Woltar to speak.

"Sir, if I may? The Kingdom of Aquaria has long been at peace with Airyglyph. Even with this latest attack, might it not be possible to obtain food from them? The Aquarians are nothing if not just, and their religion decrees that they help the needy." Woltar paused for effect. "They would not let our citizens _starve_."

"The old fool has a point," Albel spoke. "The followers of that false god are very charitable. We could easily manipulate themuse them to _our_ advantage."

"Now you're thinking." The King smiled deviously. And the scheming began.

"Albel, would you stay behind, please." Albel paused at the door. Other than Vox's outburst, the meeting had been very uneventful. He had no wish to prolong it. "I wish to speak with you, _alone_," the King shot a pointed look at Woltar, who was gathering up the scattered maps of the region.

"Good day, m'Lord," Woltar scurried out the door.

"Have a seat, Albel." The King gestured to the seat to his right, a place normally reserved for the highest ranking officer, Vox. Albel took a step toward the King, and then hesitated. It would be against protocol to sit there, yet he doubted Arzei would care either way. Still, there was always the chance that this was a test.

Arzei might be kind, but he was an intelligent man and capable ruler. If Albel sat in that chair, Arzei might see it as a sign that Albel was unhappy with his rank. Or it might be seen as disobedience toward the royal line. Of course, it could always be seen as a show of trust, and wasn't the offer just that? A show of trust?

After some consideration Albel walked over to the King and sat down. "Good," the King smiled. Albel suddenly felt very unsettled. What was so good about it? He had merely sat down. 'Damn that cunning bastard,' was the thought that whispered through his mind.

"I suppose you're wondering what I wanted to talk to you about. Well, it's the same thing I'm always pestering you about." Albel started to push himself out of the chair. "Don't leave yet, this is an important topic. And anyways, you haven't been dismissed yet." Albel sat back down and settled for glaring at the King. Arzei didn't pay him any mind.

"Albel, you're a military captain, you're twenty-four, and you're attractive. People throw themselves at your feet. There are probably hundreds of girls in Airyglyph who would settle down with you no matter how horribly you treated them. Why won't you just pick one and…produce an heir…?" Arzei trailed off at the dark look Albel was sending his way.

"Produce an heir? And contaminate this desolate rock with more of the rabble? Don't be a fool. We don't need heirs, we need food."

"I know that, but a little compassion might be nice sometimes." The King leaned forward.

"Why is it you've never been with a girl? Are you afraid?" Albel shifted uncomfortably. The King, sensing he was on the right track, continued. "You don't even like girls, do you? It would certainly explain a lot."

"Don't be" Arzei cut off the protest.

"Albel, I don't care. In fact, I would prefer that you look at women as the enemy. We are fighting against _Aquaria_, after all. It is a country run by women."

"Fighting against them? I thought we were 'considering' fighting against them."

"Don't play that game with me, Albel. You know as well as I that an assassination attempt was made, and we have to retaliate! And quite changing the subject!" Albel decided not to point out the fact that it was Arzei who had changed the subject to begin with.

"Fine."

"Good. Back to the original subject. Was I right? Do you really…go for the other side?" Arzei leaned forward with interest, as if he would somehow not hear the answer in the deathly quiet room.

"Yes," was the whispered response. Albel seemed to diminish with this pronouncement. Arzei suddenly felt very guilty about prying. It was clearly a subject that Albel wasn't comfortable with.

"Really," the King said softly. He hadn't expected Albel to actually answer the question, much less so passively. "I thought so. If it makes you feel any better…me, too." At Albel's questioning, still timid look, he clarified, "I mean I go the other way, too."

"I…see," was the incredulous response. The King, sensing the awkward mood, swiftly changed the subject.

"Will you be staying in Airyglyph this winter?"

"It is unlikely. I am training an army in Kirlsa, and the frigid winters of this city don't suit my lifestyle." Albel spoke rather tersely, and Arzei suspected that it was out of annoyance for the quick change in subject.

"As cold as it is here, it is beautiful. I've been hoping you might eventually be persuaded to stay with us for a little…umm…visit." The King grew hopeful. " Would you perhaps come down for a while? We have plenty of spare rooms in the castle, and we always have space ready for Captains such as yourself."

"I think not."

"I see. Well, do write us this year."

"You know I won't. You know…" Albel lifted his claw vaguely.

Yes, King Arzei did know. He knew how self-conscious Albel was about his claw, how he could no longer write. He also knew that there was an arm beneath the cool metal; a scarred and burned arm, but an arm. Everywhere Albel went, the rumors flew. Albel had been training since he was two years old. Albel had decapitated his mother when he was a boy. Albel the Wicked had never spoken to anybodyhe was mute.

Arzei knew all of the rumors, but he also knew the facts. Albel was left-handed, but his left arm had been badly burnt by a magical fire. Magical wounds rarely healed without the aid of runology, and the runologists had all fled Airyglyph long ago. The claw was a shield. It protected the swordsman from further injury.

"All right." The King broke the awkward silence that had fallen. "Well, I suppose tomorrow is our last meeting before both you and Woltar leave for Kirlsa. Perhaps I'll see you off."

"That is not necessary."

"But it is polite. And it is customary among friends." Arzei was relieved when Albel did not say anything about the 'friends' comment. "You may go. I shall see you tomorrow."

"Thank you, Sire." With those departing words and a slight bow, Albel stood up and headed for the door.

End part one

Yeah, I rewrote it. It needed it. The Chapters have been renamed, too. This one is 'Cutting Edge of Notion,' which is the battle theme of SO3. Ch. 2 is 'Collapse of Frailty, which I thought fit well 'cause Fayt sticks up for himself rather than just smiling and nodding at Sophia. Ch. 3 (Albel again) will probably be 'The Divine Spirit of Language,' and Ch.4 (which is planned to be Arzei) will most likely be 'Chrysanthemum in Winter.'

I can't wait!


	2. Collapse of Frailty

Disclaimer: Star Ocean: Till the End of Time belongs to the wonderful people at Tri-Ace. I am making no money off of this story.

**Warning: This fic is Rated R for a reason. There really isn't anything violent in this part, but there will be adult subject matter later in the story.**

**Another Warning: This fic will eventually be Fayt/Albel. If that kind of thing offends you, then please don't read this story.**

AN: w00t! Chapter 1 is done! (does little happy dance) Sorry about the delay on this one, I've been uber-busy these past few weeks. This chapter will deal with Fayt and Sophia on their vacation. Both part 1 and 2 of Chapter 1 had loads of foreshadowing (bet ya didn't notice, heh? Probably scurrying to re-read them now, heh?).

I hope this part isn't too boring. I wasn't really sure where to take it at first. I'm pleased with how the dream in the middle turned out, though.

**CHAPTER 1 IS RE-UPLOADED AND EDITED! PLEASE RE-READ IT!**

Onward!

Catch Me When I Fall From Grace Ch. 2 - Collapse of Frailty

"Fayt! Fayt! There you are! I've been looking everywhere for you!" Fayt looked up as the young girl stalked into the room. _'Oh no, I forgot about that,'_ he mentally cringed. The young brunette placed her hands on her hips. "You promised you'd come and have lunch with me!" she whined.

"Sorry, I lost track of the time." Fayt stood up to greet her. "We can go out to lunch tomorrow. I promise. I'll even have the computer remind me." Sophia continued to glare. Fayt ran his hand through his hair and sighed. "Look, I'm sorry. I was playing in the battle simulator and lost track of time. It won't happen again."

"Fayt, we've been her for two weeks, and we only have two more 'til we leave. You haven't spent any time with me at all!" She stamped her foot in mock impatience. "I'm beginning to think you like your videogames more than you like me!" She teased. Fayt didn't dare break her quickly improving mood by telling her that she was right. He _did_ like the battle sim more than her.

Fayt would never know why she had chosen him. The only time she ever said much of anything to him was when their parents got together.

She was a preppy. All of the teachers loved her, she had millions of friends, and half of the boys would sell their souls for a chance with her. Fayt was the punching bag for all of those boys. When she walked through the hall, girls waved hello and guys stopped to stare. When he walked through the hall, the girls laughed and all of the boys shoved him into the walls.

There was one big problem with their 'relationship.' He didn't like girls like her. She was a… kind of a twit. And she liked him. While Fayt didn't dislike her, he would certainly never consider having a relationship with her.

"Look, Sophia. I'm under a lot of pressure. College is a lot harder than what you're used to. I just need a little time to myself to wind down. I know it seems like I'm ignoring you, but I'm not trying to. I'll spend more time with you form now on, promise." Gag. Fayt flashed his puppy-dog smile, and Sophia melted.

"Oh, Fayt, I understand. You have a lot of stress, especially going into Symbology." She patted his arm reassuringly. "So it's a date?"

"Yeah, tomorrow at 11:00. I'm sorry to run off like this, but I've gotta go. I was just heading off to work on my final report when you arrived." Fayt quickly bowed and headed toward the door. "See ya!" He called before he walked out.

"Bye!" She waved at him. When he was gone she muttered softly under her breath. "I'm not an idiot, Fayt. You weren't going anywhere, you were sitting down." Then she sighed and left to look for Aunt Ryoko.

"Agh!"

_CRACK_

Fayt stumbled backwards at the force of the blow. "Oh yeah? We'll just see about that!" He landed a powerful kick to the back of the Dire Wolf's head. A giant bat swooped down and clipped his leg, knocking him off balance.

He toppled to the ground. The Dire Wolf spun around and lunged at him. The system lights went on and he stood up.

"Fayt Leingod. 38 wins, 1 lose. Your Win/Lose ratio is now 38:1. Congratulations, Mr. Leingod, you've set a new record for the Hyda IV battle simulator system." The computer menu appeared in front of him, prompting him to either give up or continue.

"Computer, shut off the battle simulation system. I'm done for today." Fayt ran a hand through his head. 'I just can't concentrate. Not with Sophia breathing down my neck.' He walked out into the lobby and picked up his school books. He had brought them with him on the off chance Sophia had come looking for him and asked him where he was going. His excuse was going to be that he had wanted some fresh air, but as it had turned out, he wouldn't have needed the cover story anyway.

Fayt left the lounge area and headed for his room.

"Fayt!"

"Mom! Sophia!" The green flames licked at his face. They were so _cold_. Fayt squinted through them. "Dad! Where are you guys?" He called out. They were out there, he had heard his mother.

As Fayt stood looking through the darkness and emerald flames, he felt very lonely. _What is this place?_ He began walking forward. As he walked the flames crystallized around him forming a green shimmering tunnel. _Like the fire is freezing…_He paused and looked into the glowing depths of one of the walls. Reflected within there were a million Fayts, all doing something different. There was a Fayt that was crying, and a tiny little Fayt that was eating a hamburger, and, he noticed with amusement, a tiny little Fayt watching an erotic movie on the computer terminal.

"How strange…" he reflected aloud. Then he continued through the green ice tunnel. He walked for what seemed like years, _But there is no 'time' here, is there?_ until he heard a noise. It sounded like a small child crying. He hurried toward the sound.

"Hey! Is anyone there?" He called out to the child. At last, in the darkness, he came upon the boy. _It's me!_ It was him, but much younger. _I must have fallen out of the wall…_ He walked toward himself. He walked toward the blue-haired boy kneeling on the ground and crying into his hands.

"Are you alright?" The boy looked up at him. Fayt stepped back. It wasn't him. "Who are you?" he asked himself. _It's me, but it's not me…_ The child sniffed and wiped it's face on it's sleeve. Then he stood up.

But he didn't just stand up, he changed. _That's me…_ The man that the child (_Fayt…)_ changed into was not someone Fayt had ever seen before. He looked into the man's eyes and saw Red. The man reached out to him. Fayt grabbed the man's hand, but as he did he saw that his skin was being sliced. The man was cutting him somehow. _But he's not touching me there._ Indeed, the thin lines of blood that were appearing weren't being caused by anything Fayt could feel.

"You…" the man said. "…Don't" He shook his head at Fayt. _Don't what?_ "Don't leave. I hate you, but don't leave."

"I won't," Fayt assured the man. The scratches on his hand were gone now. "I won't leave, but I don't hate you. I promise." He gripped the strange man's hand tighter.

"Don't fall," the man warned.

"I won't."

"Don't fall…" the man repeated, but the rest of the warning was lost on Fayt. He couldn't see. All he could see was…

Red. And he fell.

Fayt woke up the next day with his hands bleeding where he had dug his fingernails into his palms during the night. After rinsing off most of the blood he went to meet Sophia. He had slept in until 10:00.

He walked into the lounge area at the center of Hyda IV. Sophia was already sitting on a bench waiting for him. She waved and stood up to greet him.

"Hey Fayt," she called as he got closer. He stopped when he got in front of her. "I was thinking that maybe we could go to the café by the beach. It looks really cute, I bet they have good food!" she bubbled.

"Sounds great," he said, reluctantly.

"Oh, come on! You could try and sound a bit more enthusiastic than that!" Sophia scolded. Fayt just rolled his eyes. "Don't roll your eyes at me. If you tried to be a bit more friendly, you might have a few more friends." It was an unspoken rule that they never spoke about each other's social status while away from school. Sophia had crossed a line when she had talked about Fayt's friends.

"Don't talk about my social life as if it's something a can just **change** by smiling and talking to people." Fayt snapped. "It's not as if you've ever had to worry about your class not liking you. Some of us don't have the entire school drooling over us wherever we go!"

"I'm sorry," Sophia mumbled, and Fayt noticed she was crying. Unfortunately he was too mad at her to care about whether or not she was sorry she was a spoiled brat.

"Yeah, well, leave me the hell alone!" he hissed, and stormed out of the room.

Sophia sat back down in her chair, and with tears still running down her face, took a sip of her strawberry milkshake.

Later he would look back on their argument and realize shouting at her wasn't the most mature thing to do, particularly since he rarely swore around anyone save his few close friends. Still, it had served the purpose of keeping her away from him for awhile.

Fayt spent the next few days researching the famous Battle-Sim fighter Alsair Souffre. He really was a fascinating person. He was only eighteen, but he already had a win lose ratio of 323:1. He was also very attractive, of course Fayt would eat his own intestines before letting anyone else know that, even his best friend Sophia. Especially Sophia.

With only a week and a half left of his vacation, Fayt turned off the computer terminal and fell asleep.

I apologize for the extreme shortness of this chapter. The author's notes are probably longer than the actual chapter. I tried to make it longer, but drama on Hyda is kinda boring to write about, and even more boring to read about. When I get the next Albel Chapter up (and maybe an Arzei one, too) I'll post the conclusion to the events on Hyda.

Reviewers: Thank you to the people that took the time to read my story. I have the worst luck with these things. I'll post a story, and even though every other new story in the category gets about 3 reviews for the first chapter, I generally only get…one…if I'm lucky.

Questions….

**Maya: No, they won't be a couple. The King does _sort of _flirt with him here and there, but it's nothing I'm going to develop…much. (oops, gave away a tiny plot point)**

And to everyone else who reviewed, thank you so much for your support.

**Kaorustalker30: It was so nice to hear from you! It's nice to know what I'm doing right in a fic. I hope you review again!**

Terra, KinOfDragons, Minako, Rainbow, Opressed Tree, Pyroclastic Flow, and Silver Raven 014, thank you!


	3. Undiscovered Ocean

Disclaimer: Star Ocean: Till the End of Time belongs to the wonderful people at Tri-Ace. I am making no money off of this story. Furbies are a creepy toy that belongs to…someone. (Hasbro? Mattel? The Monopoly Man?)

**Warning:** This chapter is **RATED R**! It's very **BLOODY**!Albel is **NOT A NICE GUY**!The scene with the cook will have some importance later, so you shouldn't skip it.

AN: Sorry this chapter took soooo looooooonnnnnngggg. I'm still not completely satisfied with it. This chapter is 'The Divine Spirit of Language' and 'Into the Undiscovered Ocean.' Fayt AND Albel in one!

Catch Me When I Fall From Grace Ch. 3.1 - The Divine Spirit of Language

_part1_

_Lick the Blood Off of Your_

_Fingers_

Albel's boots kicked up huge clouds of dust as he dragged his feet along. He supposed he could have just lifted his feet up a little bit, but that would deprive him of the pleasure of hearing the soldiers behind him cough and choke as they marched. Some of them had even started falling behind to avoid the miniature dust storm up ahead.

"Hurry up!" Albel hissed. The men who were breaking the lines quickly ran to fix them before the captain pushed his sword through their guts. "Fools," Albel murmured under his breath.

They were marching from the Kirlsa Camp to the Bequerel Mine Path. It wasn't a long walk, and they had only been marching for several hours, but the men were already complaining of exhaustion. Albel supposed he would have to intensify their training.

As they neared the road that led to Arias Albel heard voices up ahead. Deciding that the best course of action would be to send in a scout, he waved the lines to a halt and snuck toward the corner with a younger recruit.

Whoever it was would be in for a surprise if they rounded the corner and found around 20 soldiers from the Black Brigade standing there ready for battle. Albel smirked at the thought.

Albel and the younger man, a soldier by the name of Arvaik, crouched behind a large boulder and peered around the edge. They must have made a comical sight, because a few of the soldiers behind them chuckled softly beneath their helmets.

Albel spotted the people speaking almost immediately. It was two young women, one in Aquaria colors. He had seen the first woman before. It was the fool cook that had accosted him in the kitchen a few weeks ago. The second, the one in Aquarian armor, was someone he had never seen before. She had short red hair and a disapproving face. She seemed to be scolding the cook about something.

Albel decided that he disliked this Aquarian immensely. Despite what people thought of him, he generally gave people several chances before he gave up completely. There were very few who would never get the chance to prove themselves to him. This woman was one of them.

She had a very strict voice. It reminded him of his mother when she reprimanded him. And she was very haughty and sure of herself. Albel liked confident people, but she seemed a bit overconfident.

'She grew up in a country where everything was handed to her on a silver platter. Of course she's a bitch.' Albel said to himself. Albel and Arvaik waited for several more minutes before the Aquarian woman left toward Arias.

After watching the Aquarian walk away, the cook started walking toward them. As she neared the rocks where they were hidden, Albel stood and pointed towards her. The girl might not be able to see his soldiers, and vice-versa, but that they could see his him.

Startled by the Captain's sudden appearance, the girl screamed. This was all the prompting the soldiers needed. They rushed around the corner and grabbed her. Several grabbed her hands. Another pulled her hair. The girl was pushed to the ground and bound. She started crying.

When his subordinates were finished tying her up, Albel walked over to her. "Well, well. A spy," Albel spat, and kicked her leg. "Passing information on to the Aquarians? That woman didn't seem particularly pleased with you. Did you get in trouble?" Albel said this last bit with mock sympathy. When the girl only whimpered, he continued.

"Poor girl, first getting into trouble with the Aquarian, now getting into trouble with us. I'm sure my men will know just what to do with a treacherous bitch like you." At this, many of his men's mouths stretched into lecherous grins. The girl shrunk away from them.

"Some day, people like you won't have all the power. Then you'll see what we really think of you!" The girl started out strong, but by the end was mumbling. Her threat did nothing but start a bout of laughter in the men.

"What you really think of me?" Albel said, crouching down in front of her. Then he stood and said, "Have fun with her," and walked away to sit on a rock and sharpen his claw.

As the soldiers fell upon her, the girls screams reached a fervent pitch. Albel hoped she would shut up before he had to deal with her again.

As he sat in the shade beneath the cliff-face he looked around at his men. The majority of them were standing around trying to ignore the sounds of anguish coming from the small crowd in the middle of the crossroads.

One of the men finished with the cook and walked away from the crowd. Albel watched without interest as the man straightened his armor and wiped a bit of blood off of his knee.

After the men had gotten bored with her and left her there, Albel knelt down in front of her. She was still crying, but softly. With his good hand he grasped her by the hair and pulled her up until she was sitting. Her sobs grew a bit louder. "Traitor," Albel whispered.

She whimpered and he pulled her hair harder, till she was kneeling. She began screaming at him. "You sick twisted-" She didn't have a chance to finish before Albel wrapped his claw around her throat and began to squeeze.

Her sobs turned into chokes as her flesh was sliced and crushed beneath Albel's hand. The men around them winced when they heard the wet crunching sound of her bone's breaking. The chokes turned into bloody slurping, but Albel continued squeezing.

Eventually his claws sliced through the tendons and crushed bones in her neck, and Albel dropped her to the ground. Then he stood and called his men back into formation. As they walked down the road toward Bequerel flies began to gather on the nearly severed neck of the girl.

"Halt!" Albel called back to his men. They stopped in front of the entrance to the Bequerel mine. "We should proceed with caution. Although we have a pact with the dragons, I don't exactly trust them. I'd rather not have any serious injuries this time around."

Arzaik lit his lantern and led the others into the mine. Albel followed behind.

Albel stumbled down the hallway toward his room. The operation at Bequerel had been a success. They had secured enough copper ore for a new ballistics device, and captured several air dragon eggs in the process. It had taken nearly a week's time, total. Now he was back in Airyglyph, under orders of the king, to be a bodyguard.

Another assassination attempt had been made while he was away, so rather than letting him stay in Kirlsa for the winter, Arzei had commanded him to stay in Airyglyph.

Unfortunately, this also meant that Arzei would have ample time for his little 'talks.' Albel cringed at the thought.

As he rounded the corner, he nearly ran into a soldier from his own brigade. "Oh Sir! Umm…my apologies! I was just looking for you, because I needed to speak to you, and I, well…" The soldier floundered for a few moments.

"So…A-" Albel searched for the young man's name. "Arzaik. What do you want?"

"I was wondering if perhaps you would want to go out to the tavern with me and some of the others tonight?" Arzaik shifted around nervously.

Albel ground his teeth together. "No. I'm afraid I cannot." _Which isn't exactly true, but he doesn't need to know that._ "I have business with the King."

"Oh…well, the invitation is always open!" Arzaik smiled sadly, then walked out toward the entrance hall. Albel was left wondering why he had looked so disappointed.

Catch Me When I Fall From Grace Ch. 3.5- Into the Undiscovered Ocean

_Part2_

_Fall off the Edge of the Earth_

Fayt woke up and pulled the safety harness over his head. "Computer, where did we land? Can you give me any information on the life forms or geography of this area?"

"We are currently in a desert not unlike those found on pre-industrialized Earth. My scanners detect a small town of about 100 to 200 humanoids seven kilometers east of here. There are no geographical features in between our current location and the village that would hinder travel."

"Right. Computer, shut down primary power of the ship."

"Right away."

Fayt stood up and stretched. Then he opened the door to the Evacuation Pod and stepped out outside. He looked around at the desert. _Man, I wish I was still on Hyda. Speaking of which…_ He took his Com2 and flipped it open. "Damn! Still no signal!" He slammed the device closed in frustration.

"Well, I guess I'll go to that town." He turned to the pod and opened the sliding panel to the Synth-Device. _A sword would match this planet's level of development. _Fayt took his newly made sword and headed east toward the town. As he walked he thought back on the events that led to his arrival.

"_Please proceed to the nearest evacuation facility. Please remain calm." _

"_Fayt! Oh good! There are enough escape pods!"_

"_Not for all of the civilians AND the crew!"_

"_Bye Fayt! See you soon, okay?"_

"_Of course!"_

"_Computer! Activate primary thrusters! Take us out of the blast zone!"_

"_Computer, where are we. Search for the nearest friendly ship."_

"_We are currently in the Elicoor system. Habitable planets are Elicoor II, Elicoor III, and the moon of Elicoor IV. There are no Federation or allied ships in the vicinity."_

"_What are the levels of civilization in this system?"_

"_Elicoor III and satellite of Elicoor IV are uninhabited by any humanoid or Psuedo-humanoid peoples. We have no information on them at this time. Elicoor II is rated as a UP by the Federation. It has a civilization level roughly equivalent to 17th century Earth on the southern continent, and early 19th century Earth on the Northern continent. There is also a small eastern continent which is nearly uninhabited."_

"_Computer, land the ship on Elicoor II."_

"_We will arrive in two hours."_

"So the name of the town I'm going to is…Kirssla…Kisslar…ki…Kirlsa. Right. And I'm an engineer from the Northern Continent. Which is why I have that interesting…flying device. Okay, but why am I here?" He talked to himself as he walked. "Got keep my story straight."

Fayt walked around a bend in the road. A little ways ahead he saw a large stone wall with a crude metal gate.

"Finally. That must be Kirlsa." Fayt resisted the urge to run into the city. As he neared the gate an older man in heavy armor walked out to greet him.

"You there!" the gruff man said. "What business do you have here?" old man eyed him suspiciously.

"I'm a traveler from the northern continent. I'm just looking for a place to stay until I can repair my transport vessel, or one of my friends notices I'm missing and comes to get me."

"What sort of _transport vessel_?" Fayt swallowed nervously.

"It's a…flying…ship."

"And you said you were from Greeton?" The old man asked, glaring at Fayt.

"Greeton?"

"That northern continent."

"Oh, yes." Fayt smiled weakly at the shrewd old man.

"An' how does your _flying ship_ fly?"

"It's…difficult…to explain."

"I see." The old man glared a bit more from underneath his bushy eyebrows then said, "I'll have to take you to see our Lord, I'm'fraid. If you'd follow me." The old man turned and went through the gate and into the town.

"This is Kirlsa, if'n you didn't know. Just a humble mining town. Not much compared to your place with _flyin'_ machines and whatnot."

"Oh, well, it's very homey." Fayt said enthusiastically. The old man glared some more.

Fayt was beginning to wonder of his face just looked like that naturally.

As they walked, Fayt looked around. The town had a tired, lazy quality about it which he found very appealing. It was also covered in dust.

"If'n you're here for a while, you might want to look into getting' yourself a better sword. That things not better than a kitchen' knife thar. Well, looks like we've arrived."

Fayt realized that they were standing at the base of the stairs leading to a very opulent mansion. "Lord Woltar's in Airyglyph, so you'll be speakin' with Lord Albel. He got in just yesterday. He's harsh, but ye ain't goin' to find a better swordsman. Just head on in and tell the guard the gate-keeper sent ya'. Then you're going to tell Lord Albel the same thing you told me."

"Alright. Thank you, Sir…"

"Clydus. Now then. Good luck!" Still glaring, the old man slapped Fayt on the back and headed back toward the western gate.

Fayt looked up at the imposing door, then climbed the stairs. He hesitated when he reached the top, pulled the door open gently, then slipped inside.

At the base of huge staircase stood another guard, this time with a helmet. He spoke to Fayt as the frightened boy closed the door behind himself.

"What business do you have here?"

"The gate-keeper, Sir Clydus, sent me to speak to Lord Albel."

"Why?"

"I'm an engineer, from…Greeton."

"I see. Leave your sword on the table there. Right up the stairs. Middle door." Fayt set his sword down on the polished wood table in the sitting room. The guard stepped to the side, and he walked up the stairs to Lord Albel's office.

He paused before the door, unsure of whether to knock or just enter. _Oh, screw it._ He pushed open the door.

_part3_

_Live By the Sword, Die_

_By Your Eyes_

Albel looked up sharply as the door opened and glared at the boy who entered. And what the hell was he wearing anyway? "What is it worm?" he ground out. He smirked when he saw the boy fidget with the hem of his shirt.

"The-gate-keeper-Clydus-told-me-to-come-here-because-I'm-an-engineer-from-Greeton-and-he-said-you'd-want-to-talk-to-me." The boy said in a rush. Albel raised and eyebrow as he watched him inch closer to the doorway.

"Sit down. What's your name?" Albel waved his good hand at the chair in front of the desk. 'That would explain the clothes and the…_blue_ _hair_,' he thought. "And how exactly did you get here?" he asked, leaning back but keeping his claw well out of sight.

"Well, I was going to rescue a friend of mine, but my flying ship broke, and it crashed not far from this town. My name's Fayt Leingod."

"Lord Albel Nox. Your flying ship broke?" Albel asked incredulously. "And you expect me to believe such nonsense? How do I know you're not a spy from Aquaria?" He received a blank stare. "Do you have any proof to support your claims?"

Fayt shifted uncomfortably in his seat. "Well, my ship isn't that far away. If you want proof you can go see for yourself."

"And how do I know you're not trying to lure my men into a trap?" Albel was getting bored with this conversation already. These Greeton people were horribly dull. And what horrible fashion sense.

"Why would I lure your men into a trap? I'm sorry Sir, but I'm not very familiar with the politics of this continent." Fayt was beginning to regret coming to this town. He could be in a lot of trouble if they thought he was some sort of spy. He might get thrown in jail.

"We're at war with Aquaria." Fayt just stared blankly. "There's a map on the desk right in front of you." He snapped. He didn't have time for this idiot.

"Oh," Fayt mumbled and leaned over the desk to look at the map. Then he sat straight again. "But I can't read your language."

Albel snarled in disapproval. In one smooth motion he stood up and pointed his claw at the map violently. "That's Kirlsa! And this is Airyglyph." He made a circle showing the perimeters of the kingdom. "And _that_ is Aquaria." He hissed, stabbing at the land north of Airyglyph.

"Oh…" Fayt said vaguely. He was staring rather intently at Albel's claw.

"Since you obviously have no concept of the current political affairs of this continent I'll take your word that you're from Greeton. Once the soldiers I sent out return with the report on your flying ship, I'll decide what to do with you. Until then you will stay here, in this mansion, and you will not leave the grounds without _me_."

"When did you send soldiers out?" Fayt asked, alarmed.

"Before you arrived. You must have passed them on your way through town."

"You mean you already knew about my ship?" Fayt was horrified. This was a major violation of the UP3.

"Don't be ridiculous. Of course we knew. We have _scouts_." Albel suddenly realized what Fayt was looking at and drew his clawed-hand away from the map sharply. "Your room is out the door and to the left of this one."

"Oh," Fayt paused, "thank you." He stood and, sensing the meeting was over, turned and left the room.

**AN:** The Com2 is my techie abbreviation of Compact Communicator. This story is going in a completely different direction than I had hope…Summary update!

The next chapter is in the works, so I'll try and have it up by the end of the month…Sorry for the delay with this chapter!

Please leave reviews of the muchness and the longness! I'll give you a Furbie!


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